Page 37 - GEORptMay18

9.1.5 TMT sector news
The World Bank, in collaboration with the Georgian economy ministry, will develop a National Innovation Ecosystem in the country in order to foster the digital economy and innovative start-ups. The World Bank will finance the project, which is estimated to cost $40mn. Countries in the South Caucasus, including Georgia, have been seeking to develop their value-added sectors, such as information technology, in recent years. Armenia is a leader in this sector in the region, with IT and technology accounting for 5% of GDP, and a sizable qualified workforce that has attracted the likes of Microsoft to open up innovation centres in the country. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has been working on digitising its public services and installing fibre-optic Internet connections across the country. Following in their footsteps, Georgia is also working on Internet connectivity and promoting tech start-ups. The project will comprise four parts, namely the development of an innovation infrastructure through the creation of a network of innovation hubs in selected cities and town; the provision of innovation services; ensuring financing through technical assistance and matching grants; and project implementation support.
9.1.6 Agriculture sector news
The availability of cheap imported sugar in Georgia has prompted a sugar factory in the village of Agara, in northern Georgia, to halt production and temporarily lay off its 500 workers, according to a report by the Caucasus Knot. In response, villagers have staged several protests, most recently on March 2 when they demanded that Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili meet with them. Workers have reportedly not received their wages for six months, though they continue to be officially employed by Agara Sugar. According to a trade union activist, Zaza Alborashvili, the factory's difficulties have impacted the entire village of 7,000 people, where half the families are estimated to depend on factory work. Record low sugar prices on international markets have affected small sugar producers in other countries as well. In March 2017, China almost doubled its tariffs on sugar imports, after its market was invaded by cheap imports from Brazil and Thailand, against which its smallholder farmers could not compete.
9.1.7 Renewable energy sector news
The board of directors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has unanimously approved a $214mn loan to finance a 280-megawatt hydropower project in Georgia, the multilateral lender has announced. In addition, the EBRD will make a $15mn equity investment in Nenskra Hydro, the company that will build the Nenskra hydropower plant. Local residents, who are mostly subsistence farmers, have opposed the project because reduced river flows will affect their crops and some residents will lose their land. Meanwhile, Bankwatch, a network of environmental organisations, has criticised the Georgian government for the secrecy surrounding the project, and for not making public its total cost. The project will be carried out by South Korea's Water Resources Corporation, K-water, and the Partnership Fund, an investment fund that was set up by Georgia's billionaire former prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili.
The Georgian government has in recent years sought to diversify its power mix by incorporating renewable and clean energy sources in order to contain its
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